I have read places that in 94 or 95 the Dead wanted to make an album around their 30th anneversary. so many roads (i love this song so much) was going to be on it, with , i THINK, days between. i also read phil had a song for it, along with a couple of Vinces songs. anyone have more info on this?

and in about 71 or 72, Hunter wanted them to release an album with Tennessee Jed, Ramble on rose, jack straw, brown eyed woman, and a couple others. i would prefer them on europe 72, but more info on these albums would be nice, thanks.

I was thinking the same thing about Unbroken chain on another possible album. They started playing it more an more in the later years because phils son really liked it. they did the same thing with other songs like the (All) new Minglewood Blues.

on archive.org you can listen to a studio version of So Many Roads. its good, no doubt, but it didnt have that nice little "So many roads to ease my soul" jam that the dead always did live. still sounded better than most songs on Built To Last though.

They did get together in the studio for the 95 album and started laying a few things down but Jerry was so dis-interested in the project and did nothing worth while whilst they were in there it got shevled for the time being. After Jerry died, Phil went through the taps to see what was worth keeping or worth working on and it was all useless. If they were going to do Unbroken Chain I don't think they would have ever topped their original version from Mars Hotel.

The Album Hunter wanted them to do would have been to throw all the new songs in from Europe, Garcia(solo album) and Bob Weir's Ace album and other new songs all onto a couple of studio albums like the classic pair from 1970. I think it would have been worderful but I don't think we can regret it since what they did instead was very good anyway and I don't think Hunter has any real regrets over it.

So you had all those songs that appeared between the two all time classic albums of 1970 and Wake of the Flood in 1973.

25 songs and none of them were recorded on a Grateful Dead studio album. Though it's pretty much accepted that Ace was a Grateful Dead album.

But can you imagine all those songs spread out over two or three clean, crisp Grateful Dead studio albums in the same vein in terms of workability and production and all round approach as they did with Workingmans Dead and American Beauty? I think that is what Hunter was saying about it.

As it is, the songs still came out in their own way through the live stuff, brilliant that it was and though we all love Europe, Ace and Garcia(solo album) and all the rest, it's nice to wonder what if!

Right, I didn't mean to understate that. It was Bob's album, and done under Bob's direction, although I would be surprised if Bob did not solicit or accept suggestions from this particular group of "session" players.

My point was that I don't think that a Grateful Dead album from the studio with this selection of songs would have sounded a whole lot different.